Hoods or closures of engine or storage compartments of motor vehicles are typically provided with a primary latch and a secondary or safety latch. Hoods on such motor vehicles are typically biased upward so that when the primary latch is released, the hood is latched by the secondary latch in a partially opened position when the secondary latch assembly engages a secondary striker. Releasing the secondary latch allows the hood to enter a fully opened position. Thus, release of the primary latch alone does not permit the hood to enter the fully opened position.
It is known to provide a handle under the hood for releasing the secondary latch to allow the hood to enter the fully opened position. The position of such handles varies from vehicle type to vehicle type but are typically out of view, and it is difficult for a person to anticipate the position of such a handle on a vehicle type the person is unfamiliar with. It is also known to have a secondary hood latch that has a release handle that is automatically presented out from underneath the hood and into view when the primary latch is released. Such self-presenting secondary latches are typically mounted on a stationary portion of the vehicle within the interior of the vehicle's engine area, thus taking up space within the engine area and increasing the time and cost of installation.
One proposed solution to the above problems is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,562 to Foster et al., the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. This secondary latch, however, is relatively complex, relatively expensive, and time consuming to manufacture and assemble.
Another proposed solution to the above problems is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,543,822 to King et al., the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. This self-presenting secondary latch is compact and mounted to the hood of the vehicle as a whole assembly so that installation is simplified and space is saved. Additionally, relatively few parts are used so manufacturing is relatively simple and production costs are relatively low. However, the presenter handle remains presented outside the hood when the hood is open and does not return until the hood is closed. This can result in damage to the release handle, the hood, and other components of the secondary latch. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved self-presenting secondary latch.